Progress in preoperative diagnosis of pulmonary lesions

Forty consecutive patients with radiologically demonstrated pulmonary lesions were selected according to the following criteria: 1) no cytologic or histopathologic diagnosis performed by conventional examination methods, and 2) no tumor tissue seen by endoscopy including the flexible bronchoscope. In these 40 patients the diagnostic value of speciments obtained by transthoracic fine-needle aspiration by blind bronchial brushing and by biopsy taken by means of the flexible bronchoscope was compared with these diagnostic methods a preoperative correct diagnosis was obtained in 29 (72.5%) cases. In 17 cases (42.5%) the fine-needle aspiration method was the only way to obtain a correct preoperative diagnosis and in four cases (10%) the diagnosis was obtained by the fiberscope.